Racing Tips – Royal Velvet can continue progressing at Goodwood

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The long trip to Hamilton was disappointing for Trainer Kevin Philippart De Foy as Bur Dubai could only manage third place.

The eventual winner took the step up in grade with ease and my selection had no real excuse on the day.

I've concentrated on the Goodwood and Brighton meetings on Friday and selected two horses that I fancy will go well.

Royal Velvet 3/1 – Goodwood 7:35

I can't say I've backed many of William Knight's horses recently, but his Royal Velvet was of clear interest in this contest and looks a well-handicapped sort if going on recent performances.

Royal Velvet made a strong impression on debut at Kempton when sent off at 150/1. She finished midpack that day however she would have gone a lot closer if it wasn't for missing the break. She continued to impress in her next start at Wolverhampton, where she secured her first win over seven furlongs. She displayed great determination by staying on and taking the lead in the final stages.

In her subsequent race at Newcastle, Royal Velvet had no trouble following up on her handicap debut four months later. She maintained a good pace throughout the race and finished strongly in the final furlong, comfortably securing another win.

During her turf debut at Newmarket, Royal Velvet faced some challenges in running. She had to race wide from the main pack and despite being easy to back on the day, she performed much better than the final result suggested. I was impressed by how she moved into contention that day given the circumstances and I'm confident that she still possesses great potential and remains a well-handicapped horse.

Oriental Art 5/1 – Brighton 4:00

Oriental Art is a quirky horse and comes with his risks but on a good day, he is better than this lot and is worth chancing at the current price of 5/1.

My selection has only had two outings this year and although the finishing positions don't inspire much confidence, I'm happy enough to ignore them efforts. His return to the track saw him finish 12/13 at Chelmsford on the AW, that race was after a 144-day break so it can be easily ignored whilst the second outing took place in a leisurely-paced apprentice race which from a punting angle is better left alone more times than most.

I'm happy to see an experienced Pat Cosgrave taking the ride for the first time, his calm and composed way of riding should hopefully help to settle Oriental Art into a nice rhythm. Oriental Art has only run at Brighton one time during his career and I was impressed by the way he handled the track that day as it can be a tricky course for some horses. He went down by two and a half lengths to Eagle's Way who was formerly trained by Sir Mark Prescott. Eagle's Way went on to achieve a rating in the mid to high 90s during his time there. My selection has failed to get to those sorts of numbers during his career but as previously mentioned, on his day he is much better than what he faces in this race.

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